Hospital train

Historically this has ranged from trains equipped to transport wounded soldiers, with basic nursing and first aid facilities on board, to fully equipped mobile medical centres, sometimes including operating theatres and nursing wards.

Poorly operated logistical supply networks and inadequate health provisions for the British army encamped around the Russian port of Sevastopol caused a public outcry in England.

The first such instance of this occurred on April 2, 1855, when the train was used to carry the sick and injured from the plateau down to the dock at Balaclava.

The siege had ended, carriage of ammunition was less important, and the supplies related more to the accommodation and comfort of the troops.

They had little or nothing in terms of onboard medical facilities, although nurses traveled with the wounded and the carriages of the trains were painted with red crosses to indicate their humanitarian role and to prevent enemy attack.

[2] These trains were able to connect with hospital ships at French channel ports in order to repatriate wounded British soldiers back to England.

[4][5][6] Russian local government and state rail services operate five trains since 2010 during specific times of the year and mostly in hard to reach villages across Siberia.

Thanks to this infrastructure and human resources, the train can care for more than 500 people a day providing services as general checkups and specialized examinations in ophthalmology, dermatology, pediatrics, geriatrics, and gynecology.

The Lifeline Express is an example of a modern hospital train of a highly technologically advanced type.

[11] Operating in India, across the extensive network of the Indian Railways, the Lifeline trains (known colloquially as "magic trains") move from town to town, remaining in a siding or platform at each town's railway station for perhaps a week or so, and providing advanced medical services (often beyond the capabilities of local medical centres) to those who apply for them, through a simple vetting or triage process, which ensures services are provided to those most likely to benefit.

A range of ophthalmic surgeries, including the common cataract removal operation, can be provided free of charge on board the trains.

[13] French railway SNCF adapted a five-unit TGV high-speed train in March 2020 for use as a mobile hospital in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.